Maternity support garment



June 13, 1944; VM, R, sgHUBERT i 2,351,296

y MATERNITY SUPPORT GARMENT Filed Jan. 4, 194s INVENTQR ABJ/N R. SCHL/@ERT Patented June 13, 1944 MATERNIT'Y .SUPPORT GARMENT Minna R. Schubert, Saginaw, Mich., assignor to f LeMonde Corset Company, Saginaw,

Mich., a

corporation of Michigan Application January 4, 1943, Serial No. 471,311

7' Claims.

This invention pertains to an improved maternity support .garment and relates more particularly to a new and useful combination of shape-forming panels and supporting bands by which improved comfort, unhampered bodily movement and smooth iit are attained at all stages of the period of maternity.

An object is to provide a front panel capable of being adjusted to progressive changes in the shape. and size of the wearers gure so the same garment can be used throughout. To attain that object I provide means for adjusting at will the overall height of the front panel, shortening it whilethe form is atter andlengtheningduring the later. stagesysuch adjustments being made without bunching the material; permitting the front to adapt itself snugly and smoothly under all circumstances.

An object is to relieve the spine at the lumbar region of all forward and downward strain. I attain this object by providing, in combination with said front panel, a novel front girdling member that overlies the lower portion of the front panel and relieves the panel proper from having to support any appreciable part of the weight. The soft front panel therefore serves principally as a shape-controlling member. It also assists in keeping the other panels and principal members of the garment smooth and comfortable.

An object to provide a simple and effective iront girdling means adapted to support the groin region properly, that is, by a band that shall given greater stretch accommodation toward the lower groin where the greater part of the weight must be supported but where enlargement is less. I attain this desirable result by providing the supporting girdle at the front with means for adequate stretching along its upper marginal edge, there being progressively less yieldv in the parts nearer the bottom edge of such member.

A further object of my invention is to provide the back portion of the garment with a new and use ul arrangement of members whereby pulls inducedV by supporting the Weight at the front and other pulls developed bythe wearer when bending from side to side, backward and for- Ward, or when turning and twisting, are all distributed around and across the back of the body diagonallyv to the other side where they are, as

it were, anchored at the opposite hip region. A

My arrangement of the back members attains the stress ldistribution just alluded to, yet allows the spine entire Vfreedom forv movement at and.

above the waist line. Also, the tapered shape of the back members permits the. use of unusually small lacings near the hipsv for adjusting `the girth. f

With the foregoing lobjects'inview and certain others which will appear later in the specifications, my invention comprises the devices described and claimed and the lequivalents thereof.

In the drawing, showing a preferred embodimentk of my invention,

Fig. l is va plan view of the exterior of the garment .as it appearswhen` `spread out fiat.;

Fig. 2 is a side view of the garment in use.;

Fig. 3 is a front view; and

Fig. 4 showsa modified detail,

For better understanding thisl invention in use it may be what resembling a sash that is'drawn aroundv the abdomen and 'up as :far: as the waist; The lower frontmargin of the sash supports the lower abdomen from beneath. The upper front part ts around the front of the abdomen and waist region, and gives correct shape without bulges, so that thin dresses Worn over the sash would appear smooth and even; The pull produced in the sides ofsuch a sash by the .load at the front is transmitted around the waist and'tlience diagonally across the back of the body to the hip region at the opposite side. Y

Referring to Fig. 1, the garment as a whole comprises a front panel assembly indicated in general by the numeral l, and a back part 2, the paits l and 2 being. connected together by a narrow right-hand panel 3 permanently secured by a stayedseam 4.

The left-hand panel is a conventional fastener panel made in two parts, one part being secured to the left-handedge of the front panel l by a reinforced stayed seam 5, the other part of the fastener panel being secured to the edge of the back part 2 by a soft seam 6. This lefthand fastener panel maybe provided with hooks and eyes, asshown..

The front panel l consists of a piece of soft fabric 1 that covers the area between the seams 4 and 5 which may contain conventional flexible stays between the top hem 8 and the bottom hem 9. The'panel fabric 1 has considerable full-` n ness, being'gathered as by pleating or shirring along thev rightand left-hand stayed seams 4 and 5 so the greatest fullness is at the middle portion of the panel to accommodate it to the body. 1

Upright casings l0',backed.with tape and containing pull .cords H are provided for the panel regarded. in a general. way'as someof length of the panel is availed of as the need increases, and by it the top hem' of thegarment height on the.. body.

can be kept at the desired under al1 conditions of use.

Numeral I3 designates a girdli'r'ig 'meribe'rfor;` band made of strong material,` vits ends being V stitched at I4to the seamededg'es ofltheirefv spective side panels. The bottom edge of member I3 is secured to the bottom hem S of the soft panel, but the'upper hem l5 'of member.-:|3 is not sewn toithe .soft panel-1.2; The .mannersof'iat-V tachment of member 'I3 tothe soft panel |''reI lieves the latter from the strain of carryingany of the body weight; thatxduty being performed solely bythe girdling member |3.-

A desirable-feature of member I3 iszthatit' is` extensiblegneanits top margin |5 to afford adequatel accommodation for increased girth.v The amount of extension permitted is'less lowerdown toward the bottom hem 9. This extensible feature may be provided byv an insert VIt of stretch-V able fabricpreferably shaped as shown in Fig. 1, or by lacings, for adjustment ,without elasticity,

as in Fig. 4. VVSpacedV fromtheedgesof the V- t insert .IIiareV stays/15a. which gare downwardly and inwardly: directed and@ stitched'fto girdling member I3. The 'staysJSa servexto keep the memberA |3v in shape, givingv the 'desired .amount of yielding stiffness to thev elastic upper zone of member I3. 1' w f Panel 3 is a conventional side panel'. It mayr have a iiexible seam 4 incommon withfront panel I, and is made of light non-stretchable fabri'c. Panel A3- extends from'seam vIl toa double fastened by the'hooks and eyes in the left-hand fastener panel. Girth is then adjusted by means of the adjusters 20 at the wearers left side and 22 at the right.

The bottom hem 9 of the front panel 'l is at the lower abdomen, Figs. 2 and 3, the upper hem 8 being adjusted to a desired waist height as inclicatedv in Figs. 42 and 3. If vthe front shape is rather ilat, then the front panel willbe made appropriately shorter by means of the pull strings I I. The take-in materiall is gathered down thefront so it lies smooth, with only small .gathers distributed the whole length and not vibunched. l

` Thefront girdling' member I3, being made of strong ,non-,flexible material, supports the weight 4of the'lower abdomen as indicated in Fig. 2. The

' lowerhem' 9 of member I3 does not stretch but seam. I1, which lmay be-without stays. Interi-f mediate the seams 6 and is a'double seam I3,v

the purposeof which will be iex'plained later.`

The back member consists of two; parts, I9.,.and

2|, alike in size and tapered. MemberA I9 has its greatest height atY and least at 6. Member 2| is the reverse. The left-hand small endl of panel VI9, Fig. 1, is anchoredfto the left-hand fastener panel at the seam. fInmember I9fadjacent seam 6 a lacer 2D is provided for girth' adjusting. "Member I9, being an extension of the side panel 3; its top margin has arhem whichiiis a continuation of the top hem 8 on front fabric 1. The'bottom edge of 'I9 is provided with a hem which is a continuation of bottom hemv 9 of fabric The complemental panel 2| is secured at itsy large end to seam 6 and extends' downwardly and to the right, Fig.. 1, passing through a slit in panel I9 between the two adjacent-seamsl,

|8,.bei'ng s'lidable therethrough to'allow vadjust-VV ments to be made by means'ofllacer 22.l The 1 small end of panel 2| is anchoredto the-seam Il; It isthus seen that thevgarment maybe ade-y quately stayed according to the user and of theweare-r. v Y v f Having described the structure of themembers of the garment in its the requirements of The garment is to be put on like a corset,being y preferred form, Iwililz'y now explain theirfcooperative relationy in use.

, girdling portion of the Vgarment serves as a thegreater yield or adjustment near the top hem `|5 gives that part of the abdomen a strong support. The endwise pull in member 3 is transmitted directly to the lower part of panel 3, thence to the `Vlower part of the upright seam 6 at the hip. The action of part 2| is the same as for |9; but reversed.r Consequently, the strong pull produced at the ends of girdle member I3 is thus transmitted principally from the lower parts of the side panels in two ways, namely, at the right to thel small end of member 2| and the larger end of member I9. Likewise, the pull produced by the other end of girdlingY member I3 is transmitted in the reverse manner from seam 6 through the smaller` end of member |9 and the larger end' of 2|. Girdling member |3 transmits the heavy pull around the waist and, via members I 9y and 2|, diagonally across the back of they wearer and to the hip area at the opposite side. When the body is bent from side to side, or twisted,for is bent forward o-r backward the two crossed and oppositely directed members I9, 2| take the resultant strains'that are developed in the side panels. The

crease progressively from the earliest to the iinal At all stages the lower front or lightly stages of use.

stayed shape-forming corset.

This garment fits smoothlyat the sides, because of the under-arm side panels. The arrangement of overlying and crossing bands .|9A Vand 2| at the back causes the back part to t smoothly under all circumstances. Their over'-v lapping arrangement makes the strong and firm. vThe lacings, which ordinarily are a source of annoyance to the wearer ofv a maternity garment are here made unusually short and have the least possible amountv of bulk.- By the arrangement shown I am enabled to employ lacings of about one-fourth the length of the ordinary corset lacings, with all the adjustability that longer laces would have, yet I attain equal rmfi ness and-comfort, with less bulk and stiffness at the sides ofthe body. Persons with small gures prefer garments with the least possible amount of lacing and with a minimum of stiffness.

back. doubly It is now apparent that I have provided a maternity garment having a novel action which I have alluded to as somewhat sash-like, whereby the spine is relieved of strain and all pull is distributed comfortably over an extensive area of the wearers back below the waist line; also, that the lower front abdominal region is held up firmly but with an appropriate degree of yield or adjustability along its upper marginal edge, for the greater comfort ofthe user.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A maternity garment having side panels and a body portion comprising a front panel of soft fabric formed with gathers along its side marginal hems and having intermediate upright pull cords adapted to change at will the height of said soft panel; a girdling support member overlying the lower region of said front panel, its side and bottom edges being secured to the marginal side and bottom hems of the panel, its upper marginal edge being free; a V-shaped extensible means inserted in the girdling member at mid length thereof, being adapted for greatest extension near its top margin and less toward the bottom; the back portion of said garment comprising two bands tapered lengthwise and extending across the wearers back in overlapped arrangement from one side diagonally downward to the opposite side at the hip region, the narrow end of one of said bands and the wide end of the other being secured to an upright seam of a side panel of thegarment at the said hip bone region, girth adjusting means in the narrow end portion of each band; one of said bands being formed with a slit near its wide end slidingly receiving the narrow end portion of the other band, thereby permitting movements of said overlapping bands relatively to each other in their lengthwise direction.

2. A maternity garment having side panels and a body portion comprisingv a front panel formed with gathers along its side edges and having pull cords adapted to adust the height of said panel; a girdling support member overlying the lower region of said front panel, its side and bottom edges being secured to the front panel, its upper edge being free; a V-shaped insert of elastic material intermediate the ends of said girdling member and capable of maximum stretch along the upper edge of such member and progressively less toward its lower edge; the back portion of said garment comprising two bands extending across the wearers back in overlapped arrangement from one side diagonally downward to the opposite side, a narrow part of one of said bands and a wide end portion of the other being secured together and to an upright seam of a side panel of the garment; girth adjusting means in the narrow end portion of each band; one of said bands being formed with a slit near its wide end, the narrow end portion of the other band slidingly received therein.

3. A maternity garment body portion comprising a front panel of soft fabric havingrmeans for varying the overall height thereof; in combination with a girdling member overlying the lower portion of said front panel and girdling the same, said member being secured along its bottom edge to the bottom edge of the front panel in non-stretchable relation thereto; the side edges being secured to the side edges of the front panel, its upper edge being unattached to the front panel, and including a stretchable member inserted therein.

4. A maternity garment body portion comprising a front panel of soft fabric having adjustable means for varying the overall height thereof; a support member overlying and girdling the lower portion of said soft panel, being secured thereto along the contiguous Side and bottom edges, th-e upper edge of said support member being free; and means for increasing the girth of said girdling member along its upper marginal portion.

5. A maternity garment comprising a body portion consisting of a front panel of soft fabric having means for varying the overall height thereof; a support member overlying the lower portion of said front panel and girdling the same, being secured thereto along its side and bottom edges only; and means for varying the length of the upper marginal part of said girdling member, said means comprising an elastic insert in the middle upper portion of said member.

6. A maternity garment comprising a body portion consisting of a front panel of soft fabric having means for varying the overall height thereof, and a support member overlying and girdling the lower portion of said front panel, being secured thereto along its side and bottom edges only, its upper edge being free; and a back member of said garment comprising two overlying tapered bands extending from each side diagonally downward to the opposite side, each band being narrower at one end, the narrow end of each band being secured to a part of the garment at the hip bone region.

7. A maternity garment comprising a body portion consisting of a front panel of soft fabric having means for varying the overall height thereof; a support member overlying and girdling the lower portion of said front panel, being secured thereto along its side and bottom edges only, its upper edge being free, a back member of said garment comprising two overlying tapered bands extending from each side diagonally downward to the opposite side, the narrower end of each band being secured to a part of the garment over the hip bone region; and length adjusting means in the narrower portion of each band; one of said bands being formed with a slit slidingly receiving the narrow portion of the complemental band.

MINNA R. SCHUBERT. 

